Karianet | Knowledge

Access Agriculture

Access Agriculture is an international NGO founded in 2012 to respond to the demand of the Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services (GFRAS), the Sustainable Agriculture Initiative (SAI) Platform and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC). Access Agriculture enables south-south exchange of and access to quality audio-visual training materials to secure sustainable livelihoods of smallholder farmers and users of natural resources.

Access Agriculture and ESDU through Karianet are partnering mainly to arabize and contextualize R&D outcomes and community-based initiatives and to encourage the dissemination and use of audio-visual training materials to enhance impact on rural communities across the MENA.

EcoMENA

EcoMENA is a regional think-tank, awareness-raiser and consultancy organization with a mission to highlight environmental scenario, promote green initiatives and foster sustainable development in the Middle East and North Africa region.
The collaboration between ESDU and EcoMENA through Karianet is based specifically on sharing information about environmental issues rising in the MENA region and promoting sustainable practices.

Oxfam

Oxfam International is a confederation of 20 independent non-governmental organizations working to find practical and innovative solutions to relieve poverty. Founded in 1942 as the Oxford Committee for Famine Relief, it is currently known as Oxfam Great Britain, and is still based in Oxford.
Oxfam and ESDU are partnering mainly through the collection of case-studies and the arabization of Oxfam’s work to make them available to the MENA region and the Arab world.

Agropolis International

Agropolis International is a French association founded in Montpellier, France in 1986 by the research and higher education institues located in Montpellier and the Languedoc-Roussillon area. The association works in the fields of agriculture, food, biodiversity and environment, with the support of the government and local authorities. Agropolis International is a platform open to the development of the Mediterranean and Southern countries and gathers a large range of stakeholders and partners of the economic development and from the civil society.
Agropolis International is partnering with ESDU on collecting and sharing case-studies and best practices in the rural world of the MENA and the Mediterranean relevant to the topics of Karianet as well as practical findings of research studies, synthesis of conferences and workshops dealing with Karianet topics of interest. Agropolis and ESDU also collaborate on Arabizing and contextualizing R&D outcomes and community-based initiatives.

Thimar

Thimar works to share information and analysis, to promote basic research, and to open policy debate on the nexus linking agriculture, environment and labor. It seeks to respond to a brutal restructuring of agrarian relations and related environmental plunder. In addition, as researchers, they bring together perspectives from agronomy, anthropology, economics, geography, public health and sociology. And it is defined as a research collective that is an independent, self-funded initiative.
The collaboration between Thimar and ESDU revolves around sharing research findings and mutual topics of interest.

Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia

ESCWA activities are coordinated with the divisions and main offices of the United Nations, specialized agencies, and international and regional organizations, including the League of Arab States and its subsidiary bodies, and the Gulf Cooperation Council. ESCWA provides a framework for the formulation and harmonization of sectoral policies for member countries, a platform for congress and coordination, a home for expertise and knowledge, and an information observatory.
ESCWA is partnering with ESDU on studies and participatory approaches for rural development with a specific focus on Renewable Energy initiatives to empower the rural poor; relevant best practices and studies are profiled on KariaNet. ESDU is currently participating in the “Building Capacities in Developing Appropriate Green Technologies for Improving the Livelihood of Rural Communities in the ESCWA region” project.

MADA

MADA is a Lebanese not-for-profit organization which aims to reinforce the relationship between local communities and their natural environment to meet their needs. MADA is working with different groups on various developmental and environmental projects across Lebanon to facilitate dynamics of change, through endogenous and inclusive efforts as well as policies and regulations, appropriate to local realities.
Mada collaborates with ESDU by providing successful Lebanese rural development projects to profile and share best practice through KariaNet.

The Food Heritage Foundation (FHF)

The FHF is a Lebanese non-profit organization aimed at promoting Lebanese indigenous culinary knowledge through the preservation, documentation and revival of Lebanon’s traditional food heritage.
FHF has been working closely with ESDU through KariaNet since 2015 to strengthen sustainable local food systems mainly by profiling good practices in agriculture and food production gained through its project activities and on-the-ground know-how.

The Asfari Institute for Civil Society and Citizenship

The Asfari Institute for Civil Society and Citizenship at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon, acts as a framework to advance research and other initiatives to foster an informed citizenry engaged at all levels of Arab associational life and promote openness, transparency, and accountability in the region.
To address the need to empower rural communities for economic and social equity, ESDU and the Asfari Institute joined forces in 2016 under the Da’am initiative “Building an alternative associational model for egalitarian development towards empowered citizenship” which highlights bottom-up, place-based analysis of current civil society models in rural communities.

Food and Agricultural Organisation

FAO is an intergovernmental organization with 194 Member Nations, two associate members and one member organization, the European Union. Achieving food security for all is at the heart of FAO's efforts – to make sure people have regular access to enough high-quality food to lead active, healthy lives. Through its Family Farming initiative, the FAO has been working closely with thousands of small farmers and producers in the MENA region by strengthening their managerial and negotiation skills to market their products and fostering the role of women and youth in the agricultural sector.
FAO has been partnering with ESDU on two initiatives linked to food security and small-scale farming. On the one hand, a close collaboration in sharing successful case studies of small-scale farming in English and Arabic on FAO’s Family Farming knowledge platform. More recently, FAO and ESDU have been carrying out an extensive MENA region research on “Improving ICT solutions and rural communities for small scale family farmers”.